Month: April 2016

The amount of calories one consumes has a huge role to play in losing weight. Performing various exercises daily may seem like enough, but if your calorie intake isn’t measured properly, your weight loss program will not be nearly as effective as you want it to be. Speaking simply, the amount of calories you eat will be the difference between gaining weight and losing weight. A calorie deficit is a must and can be achieved by knowing how many calories I should eat in a day. This means the amount of calories burned in a day must exceed the number of calories consumed. To work out a proper calorie deficit program, there are a few factors to take into consideration that determine how many calories I should eat to lose weight. To get this ratio right, you will need a little time to adjust your calorie intake until it is at an effective level for your weight loss program.

Here’s what you need to know:

1. Exercise regime

Calories are burned when you sweat during exercise or strenuous work. *Exercise intensity: Your metabolic rate increases as your workout intensifies which means your calorie intake is also boosted throughout the day.

2. Lean muscle mass

Lean muscle tissue does a much better job at burning calories than fat tissue. Proper sleeping patterns: Getting a good night’s rest plays a role in increasing your metabolism rate. Lack of sleep affects this process for any individual.

3. The history of your diet

Your metabolism rate slows down if your body had adjusted to a strict diet over time. There needs to be a break of at least 2-5 in between your diet so that your metabolism has something to feed off of and the rate progressively increases.

4. Daily protein intake

The more protein you include in your diet, the better your chances are at a faster metabolism.

5. Lifestyle and daily activities

Being mobile and walking around a lot during day to day life will burn more calorie and help to decide how many calories I should eat to lose weight.

6. Gender needs to be considered

Males always burn more calories than women do daily. Women of the same age, weight and activeness will still burn lesser calories than men in a single day.

7. Daily intake of carbohydrates

Many think that eating low-carbohydrate foods will help to burn more calories, however, this is false. The lesser amount of carbohydrates you eat, the lower your metabolic rate will be which, in turn, burns fewer calories in a day.

8. State of hydration

Drinking water as often as you can helps to burn calories as opposed to being dehydrated during the day.

Final thought

The only way to know how many calories I should eat to lose weight is by first using the above factors to determine the amount of calories burned on a daily basis. It cannot be measured by exact numbers; therefore, you will need to make a note of the results you experience during the first few weeks of your weight loss program.

Want a quick weight loss tip? Start eating your vegetables! Not only do they get rid of excess body fat, but they are also loaded with plenty of fibre which keeps your blood glucose level under control. Did we mention how vegetables have very few calories? You can eat ten large plates of vegetables without worrying that you will pack on a few pounds.

While we definitely advocate that you eat as many vegetables as you can, we would like to suggest a few foods that help kick start your quick weight loss journey.

Here they are:

1. Bell Peppers

Bell peppers can jazz up a salad in an instant. They are brightly coloured so they make salads attractive, they give your pizza a perky crunch and they taste fantastic when roasted. Apart from their incredible taste, bell peppers contain fewer calories and rich in vitamin A and C. Vitamin A helps to improve your eyesight while vitamin C helps to power up your immune system. They also contain antioxidants, which increase metabolism and consequently help you to lose weight.

2. Cucumbers

Cucumbers are not especially rich in nutrients but they are so high in water. We all know how important water is in losing weight. It gets rids of harmful toxins from your body and keeps you well hydrated throughout the day. This is a must have if you’re a vegetarian. Mushrooms are the richest in protein of all fresh produce. It contains anti-oxidants, which help to regulate blood sugar levels in your body. This way, your body can support the essential hormone balance needed to chuck unwanted weight.

3. Cabbage

Cabbages contain fewer calories and high in super food power. They help get rid of water weight by helping your body release excess fluid. Choose the red cabbage over the green one if you want to experience its DE bloating power. Cabbages also help keep cancer at bay and are high in antioxidants. This is another quick weight loss vegetable that’s rich in antioxidants and cancer fighting properties.They are rich in vitamin A, which, as we’ve mentioned, is great for maintaining great eyesight. They are slightly higher in sugar and calories than other types of vegetables but that does not take away from the fact that they are a great addition to any diet.

7. Green Beans

They make an excellent side dish to almost any meal and most people don’t mind how they taste. They are also very rich in fibre and contain very few

8. Spaghetti Squash

Cook spaghetti squash and serve with marinara sauce and a sprinkle of Parmesan instead of preparing regular spaghetti. One cup of cooked pasta contains approximately 200 calories per cup while spaghetti squash serves

9. Brussels Sprouts

While this vegetable doesn’t exactly excite the taste buds, it’s very healthy and you can try out different ways of preparing it to boost its flavor content. It’s also rich in vitamins and minerals essential to our bodies.

10. Spinach

Spinach is rich in iron, which will help you fight fatigue. You know you need high energy levels while working out at the gym.There you have it, 10 vegetables for quick weight loss.

Remember these vegetables are only healthy if you prepare them using healthy methods. Don’t deep fry them or coat them in high calorie salad dressings.

In this day and age research has shown mens testosterone is at its lowest its ever been and more and more men are being put on testosterone replacement for the rest of there lives.

In this video and article I will be giving you some advice on how to boost your testosterone naturally.

Suggested Supplements for increasing your testosterone naturally

Zinc

Magnesium Chelate

Vitamin C

Vitamin D3

Saw Palmetto

B12

Omega 3 Fish oil or Krill Oil

Boron

Testosterone Training

Compound Exercises

Deadlifts

Over head press

Barbell Squat

Farmer carries

Pull ups

Barbell Bench Press

Perform these in 4-5 sets of 5 reps

Limit the Sugar Intake

If you want to naturally increase your testosterone levels, the first thing you need to do is kick the sugar habit immediately. It has been reported that the average American takes in 12 teaspoons of sugar a day (about two tons of sugar in a lifetime). Sugar has been shown to deplete testosterone levels. So please eat in moderation.

Get more sleep

According to an article from the journal Current Opinion of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Obesity, getting enough sleep and at the right time is very important to raise testosterone. Most people require around 7 hours of sleep every night, and it’s important to be in a deep sleep from 10pm to 2am.

The body’s circadian rhythm essentially resets itself every night and releases chemicals like cortisol, which helps with overall hormone balance.

Eat More Fat and Carbohydrate

People often think carbs are bad for you and they think they will get fat. This is simply not true. The only reason why you could go on a low carb diet is if you have issues with insulin resistance.

a) In this study, the researchers divided their subjects into 2 groups. One group ate a high-carb low-protein diet, the other group ate a high-protein low-carb diet. Fat consumption and calories were identical. Ten days into the study, the results showed that the high-carb group had more higher free testosterone levels (+36%), lower SHBG levels, and lower cortisol levels when compared to the high-protein low-carb group.

Make sure you eat most of your carbohydrate after training which or around training. This will help you with insulin resistance and this is when your body needs carbs the most.

Fats are also very important macronutrient to add to your testosterone boosting diet.

In a men’s room, how many of you have secretly peeped to that god-like body of the guy next to you? After a basketball game, was there ever a time you felt so little and an outcast while inside the shower room? At a gym, have you ever seen some dudes whose heads are bowed down acting like a shy guy? During a high school reunion, are you still that type who seems to be non-existent and hasn’t gone far yet in life? Okay, I understand. Perhaps some of you are stuck in that phase of your life. I can’t blame you. No, I mean, if you reached your mid-20s and are still trapped in that zone, you’re totally responsible for it. It’s an undeniable thing. You can’t sit comfortably beside a man who sports defined muscles (which you don’t have), lean and ripped body (which you don’t have again), and cuts like that of a carved god (which you don’t have also). Men are naturally egoistic. They have to feel powerful than anyone else. They should look good in front of the woman they adore. They should possess the appeal that every girl in this world would run after.

I encountered this book that I’d say is the complete manual and compilation of all the other fitness plans, dietary strategies, and workout programs I have read. John Romaniello and Adam Bornstein are the perfect combination of fitness experts to have written such a great book. It’s not only very informative, it’s also entertaining and inspiring. The aim of the book is to help every man to reach the “Alpha Status”, a peak in one’s life where you can say you got the Alpha mindset. Start thinking that you’ll soon be happy with your body, career life, personal relationships, and boast that self-confidence.

Your age doesn’t matter. These experts can help you even if you are in your 30s, 40s, and even 50s. The main theme is to undergo density training. This means that each repetition of a workout, you have to increase the work done compared to the last session with the same training time. You have to push yourself harder and strive to increase the number of reps over time. This will result in longer endurance, stronger body, and more calories burned. This highly evolved fitness has objectives aiming to optimize your hormones, regain your health, amplify your sex life, make you look at your best and feel young inside and out.

You are born to be an Alpha, to be lean, successful, and confident. You are born to read the book, “Man 2.0 Engineering the Alpha”. You are a man. Your capabilities as a man are limitless. But you won’t achieve all that if you don’t stand up for yourself. This program is designed fully customized for Alphas like you. Receive the exciting results plus the bonuses they have for you. The freebies I’m talking about are the alpha supplement guide and the free workout with three individual training modalities: fat loss, muscle building, and “recomposition”.

Today’s blog is about, the benefits of intermittent fasting and how it can improve your health and wellbeing short term and long term.

This subject has been getting a lot more attention in the last few years and there’s more and more research being conducted on it every year.

It is a really simple concept, but people seem to over complicate it. Basically you are not eating for 16 hours then for the remaining 8 hours you fit in 2-3 meals or the same amount of calories in a smaller window.
Also in the 16 hour window you are allowed natural spring water and organic black coffee (no milk).

For example Stop eating at 8pm at night then intermittent fast until 12pm-1pm lunch time the next day then repeat.

If you do decide to train in the fasted window be sure that you get food into you asap. The bodies will be under a lot of stress and cortisol will be very high, which you do not want for long periods of time. This will cause a negative affect to your hormones.

The longest period of time I have done intermittent fasting, back to back is 9 months straight. Before I started intermittent fasting my hormones were in a bad way due to low calorie dieting and yo yo dieting which was given to me by coaches that had no idea what they were doing.

It was hard at first to train my self to eat in an eight hour window. This is due to all the health professionals instructing clients to eat breakfast or you will get fat or loose muscle which isn’t true. It’s about how many calories you consume in the day or week in total.

I am currently still using intermittent fasting a few times a week on non training days. This does not mean you have to do this as well it’s what has worked for me the best.

This intermittent fasting comes with a warning. Do not intermittent fast if you have cortisol issues and are under a lot of stress because fasting can be a stress on the body. Also it is wise not to fast if you have hypoglycemia (which is low blood sugar) or pregnant. Make sure you get a fasted blood test with a good GP before starting intermittent fasting.

Probiotics is the master key to a stronger immune system, but also for healing digestive issues, mental health illness, and neurological disorders.

New research is now showing the Probiotic benefits for men, woman and especially children’s health.

What people don’t know is that 80 percent of your immune system is located in the digestive track. This is why the brain gut connection is so important. (For more information on the brain and gut connection make sure you read Brain Maker by David Perlmutter.) The link will be provided at the bottom of this article.

Many people have issues with like thyroid problems, adrenal fatigue, joint pain and even autism but don’t realise that its due to a poor gut.

60 to 70 million Americans have digestive disease and don’t know how to fix it and it is getting worse every year all around the world.

We deal with toxins every day from high sugar processed food and all different kinds of medication. For example too many people are given antibiotics and do not realise what the antibiotics is doing to their gut lining. Antibiotics can stay in your system up to 3 years and it also destroys all good bacteria. Good bacteria helps your digestive system function 100 percent. I will explain more in my article on antibiotics and the gut.

More than 40 diseases have been linked to bacteria imbalance including depression, cancer and IBS, Your digestive track also effects your mood and can even effect diabetes and ADD.

How to take probiotics

Try to consume probiotic rich food and take a probiotic supplement every day especially if you are taking antibiotics or have used it before. When purchasing a probiotic supplement make sure its has at lease 40 billion CFU. It is best to take before you sleep or on an empty stomach in the morning a half hour before breakfast.

Top 7 Probiotic and gut killers

1. Prescription Antibiotics

2. Sugar

3. Tap Water

4. GMO Foods

5. Grains

6. Emotional Stress

7. Chemicals and medications

Fun Fact

Here is something you probably didn’t know… There are actually 10 times
more probiotics in your gut then cells in your body!.

20 Probiotic Benefits Proven by Research

boosting immune system

prevent and treat urinary tract infections

improve digestive function

heal inflammatory bowel conditions like IBS4

manage and prevent eczema in children

fight food-borne illnesses

New studies underway may soon prove that probiotics can:

reduce flu and colds

reduce overuse of antibiotics

treat kidney stones

treat colic

prevent cavities and gum disease

treat colitis and Crohn’s disease

combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria

treat liver disease

battle cancer5

manage autism

lower cholesterol

fight bacteria that causes ulcers

improve acne

lose weight

Probiotics is not a new idea that has just been discovered it has been around for thousands of years with cultures making fermented and cultured foods to treat illness.

So people, please try and eat probiotic rich food every day and go see your naturopath and they will recommend a probiotic supplement for you to use.

What’s your most irritating stressor today? Could it be your annoying colleague who bosses around every employee in the room? Or an argument with your spouse over your monthly bills? Maybe you just flunked an important exam of your life? Or lost your money in a lottery? Aha! Perhaps, just a moment ago, you glanced yourself at the mirror and felt depressed with your body image? Release the tension. Ruining your day with your worries won’t do you any good. In fact, you are pressing yourself to gain, gain, and gain more of your unwanted visceral fats.

How? When you are under stress, your body senses a “fight or flight” scenario and begins releasing a hormone named cortisol. The good thing about this stress hormone is that it inundates you with energy and gives you a higher than usual pain threshold. On the other hand, your day-to-day stressors contribute to high cortisol levels in your body all the time. This is not good for you. Your body becomes stressed out every day. Furthermore, when your cortisol levels are high, your body’s demand also increases making you feel hungry all the time. Stress-eating is now your companion in addressing this need which leads you to eat bigger portions of food. What now? Congratulations! You just gained a few pounds… again. Not only that. You are also risking yourself to other chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and high cholesterol levels. The abrupt rise in your blood sugar is also linked to high cortisol levels. Due to this, your body will store more fat. And what did you gain from this? Weight.

Fighting and finally letting go of stress is key to effortlessly lose inches of fat. An old method of relaxation has been found to effectively achieve a sound body and mind. I’m talking about yoga and the slow-moving, focused, and pain-free motions performed. According to Kris Fondran, the brain behind the Shapeshifter Yoga program, you don’t have to do grueling weight-lifting exercises to burn your surplus calories. With yoga, you lift your own body weight as you do different yoga poses. Yoga fitness flow is the combination of quickly transitioning from a pose to another aimed at calorie-burning and body transformation. Once you have mastered each pose, you’ll only need to spare 10 minutes of your time twice a day, 3 days a week, in order to see results. The yoga fitness flow program aids in sculpting or toning your muscles, more flexible and stronger joints, shaping your body, fat loss, and overall wellness. For utmost benefit, choose a light snack prior to your yoga session and avoid eating large meals 2-3 hours before.

Breathe in, breathe out. Kris Fondran will help you practice proper breathing while doing yoga’s fluid movements. Shun from the dull and monotonous way of training in a treadmill or a stationary bike. Shapeshifter Yoga will assist you into the right yoga way and just move your body and breathe. You’ll feel like you are more connected to your body now and start appreciating it. Because of this, you will want to take care of your body and have healthier food choices. No more sleepless nights, energy-draining activities, and the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

I am a man and I love shopping! I mean, who doesn’t love shopping? Whether it be to fill your closet with fashionable clothes or your grocery cabinet of all the food supplies you want. Shopping is every woman’s weakness. It’s every man’s, too. But my favorite shopping place is at the grocery store. Yes, I am a big sucker for food. Anything that’s edible, I eat – with great caution, of course. I am all for fitness and healthy living.

That’s my major dilemma. Whenever I pass by aisles and aisles of variety of foodstuffs, my knees tremble in frustration. I guess you can relate with me. When you’re presented with the palatable animal products, processed meats, ice creams, cakes, and many others that are seemingly detrimental to your health, that moment would be the biggest temptation in anyone’s “diet world”. Be careful though. There are also foods which are believed to have good nutritional values but contain hidden sugar. A few of them include your cereals, bread, spaghetti sauce, vitamin drinks, and even those that claim to be 100% apple juice. These are still processed, guys. So don’t be too gullible and practice reading their nutrition labels.

With all the fad diets revolving around the print and other reading materials, I assume you probably are tired of the false hopes they’ve given you. Don’t fret! You can always go back and revisit your science class. Remember what your science teacher has told you before? Early on, we were taught about the pH balances our human body has. A slight deviation from these values can greatly affect the pH inside our bodies and may disturb some of our organ functions.

The alkaline diet is designed for us to revitalize our bodies and our overall well-being as well. All genders of all ages can benefit from this type of diet, even those who are plagued by chronic ailments like acid reflux, metabolic disorders, diseases concerning the digestive system, and obesity-related illnesses. Every weight problem, disease, or health issue will be addressed only if you target the root source. The acid-forming foods that became a staple in your daily intake are the main culprit of your health worries right now. Cross out those sources of red meat and sugar lurking in your pantry. When you ingest these acidic foods, you put too much pressure in your stomach to work even more. This increase in your stomach’s workload is due to more stomach acid demand in order to digest the meat and sugar. Your body then becomes more acidic and fat cells are created. What are the acidic foods? What are the alkalinic foods? Read more about these on “The Acid Alkaline Balance Diet” by Emma Deangela. The package explains thoroughly what, when, and how to eat, a detailed food list, meal analysis, and basically how to alkalize your body. You are not required to undergo hardcore training, you just have to follow the alkaline diet.

Try not to feed your stomach and see how other organs will negatively respond to this. Take care of your stomach and your body will supply what you need.

As Abraham Maslow’s first hierarchy of need, the physiological needs have to be satisfied before moving on to the higher level of basic needs. Eating food belongs to this first level of need. It is a privilege that if not met will become a deficiency. Ergo, its role becomes our motivation to fulfill the need itself. What has the new weight-loss styles done for the health conscious people to view eating as a chore? Or a punishment? We all became absorbed by the latest trends, popular techniques on getting fitter and sexier, and the strict diet rules. Don’t limit your knowledge only by what fits the aperture. Start thinking big. Think MACRO.

Forget about what you eat. Center your attention to how much you eat. How much of the ‘big’ nutrients you are ingesting. The hefty nutrients I am pertaining to are your proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. These are the nutrient-dense molecules called the macronutrients that serve as your body’s sources of energy. Your daily food intake follow a formula to measure your total calories in a day. To compute for your total calories, get the sum of the macronutrients you consumed within 24 hours. A gram of carbs, protein, and fat is equivalent to 4 kcal, 4 kcal, and 9 kcal respectively. This whole flexible dieting is termed as the IIFYM, a shortcut for If It Fits Your Macros. As the name implies, allocate the portions or serving sizes of your macros regardless of what you eat. The important thing is that everything you ate fits the “macro budget” for the day. However, keep it to an 80:20 ratio. All junk foods are limited at 20% of the entire meal plan. Little indulgences do no harm. The 80%? Eat clean, hearty, and nutrient-packed meals. The 80% is attributed to your micronutrients.

I like anything easy and flexible which is why this book struck me. IIFYM seems like you’re effortlessly losing all that jiggles and improving muscle mass. In order to lose the fat, the computed total calories should be less than what your body needs to burn. Your body’s last resort for energy source? Your fat stores. That’s when you burn the fat.

To be clear, macro-counting is dissimilar to calorie-counting. When targeting your macros, you enhance your body composition. Get enough protein and you preserve your muscles. Get enough carbs and you sustain your strength in training. Get enough of the good fats and you boost hormone production. Each person, however, has differing goals. If your goal is weight loss, decrease your calorie intake. If your goal is weight gain, increase your calorie intake. Overall, if you want a sustainable progress, a continuing compliance to IIFYM is necessary.

Veer away from restrictive dieting. Provide what your body needs as long as your goals are met. Make your macros your mantra. Flexible dieting is just plain flexible and enjoyable. How to make your IIFYM plan a success? When making an informed decision on how much to eat, think if it fits your macros.

A busy lifestyle means having little or no time to exercise and this may prevent you from realizing your weight loss goals. However, being busy doesn’t mean you should give up completely on losing weight and as such, there are a number of simple techniques that you could squeeze into your daily schedule to ensure that keep in shape even the busiest of days.

1. Take a walk around the office. Take for instance, simple tasks and actions such as walking over to your co-worker’s desk and talking to them rather than sending them an email or text message. This will add up over the course of the day.

2. Use the washrooms on the next floor. It might involve walking up a flight of stairs. This ways, the lower body is firmed.

3. Drop and do 20. Whether it’s the first thing in the morning, or when you get home from work, do 20 push-ups, 20 sit-ups or 20 bodyweight squats. Or do all three! It’s a fast workout that you can do in mere minutes

4. Get up at least ten minutes early and do a full body workout circuit. This helps you keep in shape while at the same time helps you start your morning off right.

5. Go walking at lunch. You cannot realize quick weight loss by just sitting around. Rather than taking your lunch seated at your desk, go out and take a 15-minute brisk walk alone or with a co-worker.

6. Do one all-out set. You may not have time to do a full workout session at the gym. But you could use the little amount of time you have to do one all-out set of 10 or more exercises channeling all energy to it at the rate of one movement per minute. With just ten minutes a day, you could see significant results.

7. Take weekend journeys. If during the week you cannot get as much fitness training as you’d like in order to be able to realize a quick weight loss, make it a mission to take a weekend excursion. Go for a 2-hour hike and burn up some serious calories. The advantage of this is that you get to spend time with your family or friends while keeping in shape at the same time.

8. Cycle to work. You could choose to burn up some calories by cycling to work rather than driving (this solely depends on the distance from where you live to your work place). A commute of five miles is easier than you’d think.

9. Park farther and walk. Park a few blocks away from your work place and walk the rest of the distance. This way you burn some calories and therefore quick weight loss ensues.

10. Get up to change the station rather than using remote controller. Try to minimize the use of remote controller by getting up as often as possible and change channels.

Conclusion:

Take a good look at your lifestyle and determine the amount of time you have available to squeeze any work out. This you can start by being active more often, be it for just a minute in a day or more. This way, you can feel more confident that you are on track to improved fitness level and quick weight loss. Remember that it all adds up, however little it seems.